Sacrament of penance and its different forms

Bishop Paul S. Loverde

4/01/09

We know that a sacrament is an outward, visible sign - a
meeting with Christ in which He gives, restores or increases
His life of grace to us. When we celebrate the Sacrament of
Penance and Reconciliation it must have some element of
"outward-ness" and "external-ness." It is not a private
affair between God and the individual, without any outward
signs of the grace being bestowed.

This need for external signs can be seen more clearly if we
consider some basic facts we have already discussed in this
Lenten series. In Baptism we are washed clean, sanctified and
justified "in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the
Spirit of our God" (cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, no.
1425). We have "put on Christ" (Gal. 3:27). Baptism, then, is
the beginning of our relationship with God and the Community
of the Church. This new beginning and new life in Christ,
however, is affected by the human condition, which makes us
prone to commit sin. Sin is our refusal to love God and the
Community of the Church in the way Christ showed us. In His
infinite mercy, our Lord never ceases to call us back to him
in true sorrow and repentance, resulting in conversion of
heart. "Christ's call to conversion continues to resound in
the lives of Christians," (Catechism, no. 1428) and, through
prayer, fasting and almsgiving, we seek this interior
conversion of heart. There is also a need for an external
sign because our sins also injure our relationship with the
Church. That is why the Sacrament of Penance is never just a
"private affair," that is, "just God and me."

God works through external signs in every sacrament. For
example, the Sacrament of Baptism uses water as a sign of
cleansing and the Sacrament of Confirmation uses the perfumed
oil of Chrism as a sign of one being anointed with the Holy
Spirit. The outward signs for the Sacrament of Penance
include the person confessing and the ordained priest. The
priest is a sign as well, both of the healing power of God
reconciling us in Christ and of the Church community. Christ
granted the authority to forgive sins to the apostles: "Amen,
I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in
heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in
heaven" (Mt 18:8). Their successors, the bishops, and the
priests, who are the bishops' closest co-workers, continue to
exercise this same ministry through the Sacrament of Holy
Orders. Reflecting on this passage, we truly rejoice that God
gave us a way, through this visible sacrament, to acknowledge
our offenses, "take responsibility for them and thereby open
(our)selves again to God and to the communion of the Church
in order to make a new future possible" (Catechism, 1455),
and grow closer to our heavenly home.

We can celebrate the Sacrament in two different ways -
individually with a priest or communally with a parish
community which includes individual private Confessions.
" The Sacrament of Penance is always, by its very
nature, a liturgical action, and therefore an ecclesial and
public action" (Catechism, no. 1482).

The basic elements of the celebration of the Sacrament of
Penance ordinarily include: a greeting and blessing from the
priest; the reading of Scripture to assist the penitent in an
examination of conscience; the confession, which acknowledges
sins and makes them known to a priest; the imposition and
acceptance of a penance; absolution from the priest;
dismissal and blessing from the priest (cf. Catechism, no.
1480). When the Sacrament is celebrated communally, the
community gathers to pray and sing hymns. Then, the Word of
God is proclaimed through Sacred Scripture and a homily. As a
whole, the community reflects on its sinfulness and there is
a personal examination of conscience. Then there is time for
individual confessions as well. The community will pray a
prayer as penance, which reflects an outward sign of their
reconciliation with God (Catechism, nos. 1480 and 1482).

There can be a communal celebration of reconciliation with
general confession and general absolution, but only in cases
of very grave necessity does the Church allow this. This is a
practice acceptable only on rare occasions of grave necessity
such as an imminent danger of death where there is not
sufficient time for the priest or priests to hear each
penitent's confession or where there are not enough
confessors to hear individual confessions within a reasonable
time so that the penitent would be deprived of the Sacrament
(Catechism, nos. 1483 and 1484). Moreover, once the grave
necessity ends, the person must then confess his/her grave or
mortal sins to the priest.

These are ways in which we seek externally, sacramentally and
sorrowfully, forgiveness and reconciliation with God and the
Church. Other ways in which we express sorrow and seek
forgiveness include the Penitential Rite at the Mass,
reception of Communion, fasting and almsgiving.

However, we still must confess mortal sins, according to the
kind and number, and express sorrow in and through the
Sacrament of Penance. The Sacrament of Penance is not only
for mortal sins, but also for venial sins. Receiving the
Sacrament of Penance is always fruitful and purifying, even
in the case of venial sins, and reintegrates us into the
communion of the Church.

Our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI said, "In the Sacrament of
Penance, the Crucified and Risen Christ purifies us through
his ministers with his infinite mercy, restores us to
communion with the heavenly Father and with our brothers and
makes us a gift of his love, his joy and his peace" (Pope
Benedict XVI, Angelus, 15 April 2008). Brothers and sisters
in Christ, may this sacrament unite us with God, Who desires
to bestow the grace of wholeness, healing and forgiveness so
that we may spend eternity with Him!